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Three Inspiring Design Books
By Andy on 15 January 2008 early eveningCategory: Books
My sister-in-law Kayla, the graphic-designer extraordinaire, gave me three design books that have inspired her. So far, they’ve done the same for me.
The Laws of Simplicity
By John Maeda
This was the first of the three books that struck a cord with me right away. Whenever I set out to put a web site together, simplicity is the guard dog staring out at me through every pixel. I’d rather hear no other compliment than to have someone tell me that a web site I built was simple to use. The author, John Maeda, is an MIT prof who has been studying the concept of simplicity for a while. He wrote this 127 page book according to his own laws of simplicity, so it’s a quick read. There is no fluff. It’s simple. It’s dense. It’s good. My favorite laws of his is, “Simplicity is about subtracting the obvious and adding the meaningful.”
Stylepedia
By Steven Heller and Louise Fili
I’m still working on this one. It’s a good pick-up-and-read-a-few-minutes-a-day kind of book. Heller and Fili discuss the history of every influential graphic design style imaginable (most of which I didn’t know had an official name). The best part is that they are generous with their vivid colorful examples. Since I’m doing a lot of design, I’m certain I would have benefited by having an actual design education, but this helps fill in some of the holes for me.
The Architecture of Happiness
By Alain De Botton
Get ready for a little philosophy on this one, but so far, I’ve read enough to really enjoy it. De Botton shows the subtle ways that the buildings we live in and work in speak to us and to others. It affirms to me that our physical surroundings can change our mood and how we feel. Of course only the tiniest fraction of the world could actually afford to inhabit the buildings he writes about. The book itself is beautifully designed with lots of black and white architectural photographs. The writing is almost poetic, which is a kind of book I’ve not read in a long time, so it’s refreshing and enjoyable.
You might want to give these books a try. If you only get one, I recommend getting The Laws of Simplicity.
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